Duane “Keffe D” Davis was sentenced to 40 years to life in prison on Tuesday for orchestrating the 1996 killing of rapper Tupac Shakur in Las Vegas.
Sekyiwa Shakur described her brother as a gentle and kind person who protected his family. She said it was painful to hear Davis repeatedly describe how he tracked and killed Tupac, who was just 25 when he was shot.
Prosecutors argued during the trial that Davis helped organise the killing and supplied the weapon used in the attack. They relied on statements he had made to investigators and documentarians. After hearing testimony for several weeks in August, jurors reached a guilty verdict following about three hours of deliberations. Davis was the only person charged in connection with Tupac’s killing.
Davis, 63, was convicted of first-degree murder in August.
During the hearing, Shakur’s sister , Sekyiwa “Set” Shakur, spoke about the loss her family has carried for nearly three decades. “This man’s life mattered,” she told the court as family members cried. His lawyer has said he plans to appeal the verdict. Tupac’s brother, Maurice “Mopreme” Shakur, also spoke about the family’s pain, describing the killing as devastating and heartbreaking for relatives and fans.
